Side note: Some day, I hope Bostonians will learn to pronounce "Celtics" with an initial /k/, thus – rather than bowing to Latin – choosing to honor the ancient languages of Irish and Scottish Gaelic, Welsh, Cornish, Breton and Manx. It pains me to constantly hear Bostonians say Celtic with a soft /c/.
Side note: Some day, I hope Bostonians will learn to pronounce "Celtics" with an initial /k/, thus – rather than bowing to Latin – choosing to honor the ancient languages of Irish and Scottish Gaelic, Welsh, Cornish, Breton and Manx. It pains me to constantly hear Bostonians say Celtic with a soft /c/.
What does Latin have to do with it? C in Classical Latin was pronounced K. Anyway, your hope is moot in the U.S. sense. Bostonians will use the pronunciation they use, and it certainly won't change after all the historic Celtics championship teams.
The video explains that. Latin, lacking a K, used C, which was indeed pronounced /k/, as you point out. However, under the influence of French, the pronunciation of the written C was changed to a soft C. William the Conqueror brought those linguistic sensibilities to the British Isles, impacting English – but not the other languages of the islands, i.e. the languages of the Celts (hard /k/, not Selts).
Apparently in Scottish Gaelic it's pronounced like an S rather than a K. The Glasgow, Scotland based Celtic Football Club (or Celtic) - which as the name implies has always been popular with Scottish people of Irish and Catholic diaspora - also pronounces the first letter as an S rather than a K.
Side note: Some day, I hope Bostonians will learn to pronounce "Celtics" with an initial /k/, thus – rather than bowing to Latin – choosing to honor the ancient languages of Irish and Scottish Gaelic, Welsh, Cornish, Breton and Manx. It pains me to constantly hear Bostonians say Celtic with a soft /c/.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=M1M2eRQUYYk
(Ducks to avoid rotten sucumbers and avosados.)
What does Latin have to do with it? C in Classical Latin was pronounced K. Anyway, your hope is moot in the U.S. sense. Bostonians will use the pronunciation they use, and it certainly won't change after all the historic Celtics championship teams.
The video explains that. Latin, lacking a K, used C, which was indeed pronounced /k/, as you point out. However, under the influence of French, the pronunciation of the written C was changed to a soft C. William the Conqueror brought those linguistic sensibilities to the British Isles, impacting English – but not the other languages of the islands, i.e. the languages of the Celts (hard /k/, not Selts).
Apparently in Scottish Gaelic it's pronounced like an S rather than a K. The Glasgow, Scotland based Celtic Football Club (or Celtic) - which as the name implies has always been popular with Scottish people of Irish and Catholic diaspora - also pronounces the first letter as an S rather than a K.
Ouch. Can’t argue with football-besotted Glaswegians, nor Scots in general (the English have been trying for centuries).
Ok, I relent and promise never again to pick an argument with a Seltics fan!